ITALIAN SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVALS FROM THE LAKES TO LUCCA JULY 23 – AUGUST 4, 2019 TOUR LEADER: ROYNA MCNAMARA PERFORMANCE UPDATE – FEBRUARY 2019 Arena di Verona ITALIAN SUMMER Overview MUSIC FESTIVALS Academy Travel is delighted to announce its inaugural Italian Summer Tour dates: July 23 – August 4, 2019 Music Festivals tour, visiting three stimulating festivals: Bellagio and Lake Como, Verona and Puccini. With three-night stops in Bellagio, Vicenza, Tour leader: Royna McNamara Cremona and Lucca, this relaxed itinerary will enable you to savour each destination and immerse yourself in Italy’s rich musical heritage. Tour Price: $9,050 per person, twin share The first festival takes place on beautiful Lake Como. Inspiring artists, Single Supplement: $1,930 for sole use of writers and musicians for centuries, Lake Como has a unique musical double room heritage. Historic venues such as the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni and Basilica di San Giacomo in Bellagio are wonderful settings for Booking deposit: $500 per person performances. The magnificent Arena di Verona is the setting for our second festival. Recommended airline: Emirates or Qatar Delivering excellent acoustics in one of the world’s largest open-air opera Airways theatres, this internationally acclaimed festival has launched the careers of many artists. Maximum places: 20 We then explore the lives and work of Verdi and Monteverdi when we visit Itinerary: Bellagio (3 nights), Vicenza (3 nights), Mantua and Parma. Cremona has been an important musical centre since Cremona (3 nights), Lucca (3 nights) the Renaissance and, it is here, that we enjoy a private recital and explore the Luthier’s district to see the art of violin making. Date published: February 13, 2019 Our final stop is in Lucca, the birthplace of Puccini. In later life, Puccini had a deep connection with the charming hamlet of Torre del Lago and, this is the setting for the wonderful Puccini Festival. As you see the sun set on Lake Massaciuccoli before your night of opera, you will understand why Puccini found this setting so inspirational. This new tour is complemented by the culinary delights of the Emilia- Romagna region, the architecture of Palladio’s villas and, a visit to the premier wine region of the Veneto. Your tour leader Royna McNamara is a musician, educator & conductor. She has a passion for travel and has spent extended periods of time working and travelling in Spain and Italy. Royna holds a B Mus Ed from the Conservatorium of Music, and a Masters of Education from the University of Sydney, where she was awarded a scholarship to study Music Performance Practices. For twenty years, Royna was Director of Music at Abbotsleigh and continues to use her expertise in Music Education for the NSW Education Standards Authority Enquiries and (NESA) and the NSW Association of Independent Schools, where she is bookings currently the Convenor for Music Professional Learning. She has also worked as a session lecturer in Music at UNSW and the University of Sydney. For further information and to secure a place on this tour Royna also completed a conducting course with Jerry Nowak, where she please contact Kathy expanded her repertoire by conducting school and semi-professional Wardrop at Academy Travel ensembles. She has conducted numerous concerti with some of Sydney’s on 9235 0023 or 1800 639 leading musicians, including Clemens Leske, Joshua Tsai and Simon 699 (outside Sydney) or email Tedeschi. [email protected] Performance Program The Italian Summer Music Festival program reflects the diversity and beauty of Italy. You will experience large scale operatic performances in historic venues, private recitals, intimate chamber music, opulent indoor settings and performances in stunning outdoor settings such as the magnificent Arena di Verona. Italian repertoire from Monteverdi to Verdi and Puccini is the essence of this program. BELLAGIO Lake Como and Bellagio Festival Salone Reale in the majestic Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, hosts a number of instrumental concerts for the Lake Como and Bellagio Festival. In addition, Villa Cipressi, Villa Grumello and Villa Monastero, are also beautiful settings for the festival. Other venues include the Basilica di San Giacomo and Lutheran church in Cadenabbia. We will attend two performances as part of this festival. VERONA The Arena di Verona Verdi’s Il Trovatore staged in the magnificent Verona Arena, starring Anna Pirozzi, Murat Karahan, Violeta Urmana and Alberto Gazale. VICENZA Private Recital – Oblivion Soave Trio An evening of Italian Renaissance and Baroque Chamber Music featuring Elena Bertuzzi Soprano, Ilaria Fantin Archlute, Enrico Milani Violoncello. LUCCA Lucca and Puccini Festival An evening of Puccini’s operatic arias in the Church of San Giovanni, Lucca. TORRE DEL LAGO Puccini Festival Puccini’s La Bohème performed by the shores of beautiful Lake Massaciuccoli, where Puccini owned a villa and was inspired to write many of his works. Conducted by Martins Ozolins and featuring Francesco Demuro, Micaela Sarah D’Alessandro, Nikola Mijailovic, George Andguladze, Daniele Caputo and the The Puccini Festival Orchestra. Detailed itinerary Included meals are shown with the symbols B, L and D. Tour start & finish time The tour starts on Tuesday 23 July at 3.00pm, at Milan’s Malpensa airport. The tour ends after breakfast on Sunday 4 August, with a transfer to the airport for those with outbound flights. Tuesday 23 July Bellagio The group assembles at Milan’s Malpensa airport in the mid- afternoon. We travel to Bellagio, spectacularly situated on Lake Como. At 6.00pm your tour leader, Royna McNamara, hosts drinks and canapes in the hotel followed by a light dinner. Overnight Bellagio. (D) Wednesday 24 July Villas of Lake Como This morning we explore Lake Como as it was meant to be Above: The formal entrance to the Villa Carlotta on Lake Como viewed, with a private boat tour. Our first stop is beautiful Villa Carlotta, which occupies a superb position on the lake and Below: An intimate performance at the Lake Como festival; and the contains a wonderful museum with masterpieces by Antonio neo-classical Villa Melzi on Lake Como Canova, Adamo Tadolini and Francesco Hayez. We continue along the lake, passing exquisite properties owned by some of the most prominent Italian families, until we reach the 16th century Villa D’Este. Here we enjoy a relaxed alfresco lunch overlooking the gardens and the lake. This evening we attend our first concert as part of the Bellagio and Lake Como Festival. The program for this festival generally comprises vocal and instrumental recitals or chamber and choir concerts. Overnight Bellagio (B, L) Performance details Festival: Lake Como and Bellagio Festival Program: To be announced May 2019 Performers: To be announced May 2019 Thursday 25 July The artists’ lake The lake with its light and reflections has fascinated and inspired artists, writers and musicians for centuries. Franz Liszt, came to Lake Como in September 1837 and, in a letter written in the first month said, ‘I know of no other place that is so manifestly blessed.’ Like Ravello, Pesaro, and Cremona, Lake Como has a unique musical heritage. In 2011, on the second centennial of the birth of Franz Liszt, and in the 150th year of the Unification of Italy, the first edition of the Bellagio Festival was born. Today, more than forty venues in the provinces of Como and Lecco have opened their doors to the Bellagio and Lake Como Festival and, the festival has rapidly gained recognition internationally. This morning we visit the gardens of Villa Melzi and in the evening we attend the second performance of the festival. Overnight Bellagio (B) Performance details Festival: Lake Como and Bellagio Festival Program: To be announced May 2019 Performers: To be announced May 2019 Friday 26 July Opera under the stars in Verona We depart Lake Como and travel by coach to our countryside hotel, the Relais Michelangelo, about 5km from the centre of historic Vicenza. The afternoon is free to relax, swim and enjoy the wonderful grounds of the hotel. In the early evening we have a pre-performance talk by Royna in the hotel. We then travel by coach to Verona to enjoy an aperitif before we experience opera under the stars in the magnificent arena. Arena di Verona was built in 1st century AD, but the modern renaissance of the arena commenced in 1913 with the first performance of Aida. Every summer the arena is transformed into one of the world’s largest open-air opera theatres. The arena seats 20,000 and delivers excellent acoustics. Internationally acclaimed, the festival has helped to launch the careers of many artists. Maria Callas was an important figure in Verona between 1947 and 1954. She created a sensation when she first performed in Ponichielli’s La Gioconda. Overnight Vicenza (B, L) Performance details Festival: Arena di Verona Opera Festival Program: Verdi, Il Trovatore Performers: Anna Pirozzi (Leonora), Murat Karahan (Manrico), Violeta Urmana (Azucena), Alberto Gazale (Il Conte de Luna) Saturday 27 July Palladio’s Vicenza Vicenza is synonymous with Palladio. Scattered in the Veneto, the Palladian Villas are the legacy of this Renaissance master’s Above: A poster for the inaugural Verona festival, more than a century ago architectural genius. Today, we take a guided walking tour of Below: The stunning interior of Palladio’s Teatro Olimpico, a wooden Vicenza. We begin with Palladio’s Teatro Olimpico and continue building which has survived since the Renaissance and is still used for by looking at the palaces and buildings he designed in Vicenza. performances We take a break for lunch before we visit the best known of his ‘suburban’ villas - the Villa Capra ‘La Rotonda’. After dinner in the hotel, we enjoy a private recital. Overnight Vicenza (B, D) Performance details Venue: Villa Michelangelo,Vicenza Program: Italian Renaissance and Baroque Chamber Music Performers: Oblivion Soave Trio: Elena Bertuzzi Soprano, Ilaria Fantin Archlute, Enrico Milani Violoncello Sunday 28 July The Prosecco Route Today’s excursion takes us to the heart of the prosecco- producing regions of the Veneto.